Famous Political Sex Scandals

2011: Silvio Berlusconi and "Ruby Heartbreaker"

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was convicted in his sex-for-hire trial and sentenced to 7 years in prison on June 24, 2013. He was also barred from office.
Berlusconi was accused of paying a 17-year-old Moroccan girl named "Ruby Heartbreaker" (real name Karima el-Mahroug) for sex. The 74-year-old billionaire initially called the accusations "groundless."

Credit: CBS/AP

2011: Chris Lee and Craigslist

New York Republican Chris Lee was a two-term congressman who resigned in February 2011 for allegedly sending this shirtless picture to a woman he met over Craigslist. As soon as the story broke - originally on Gawker.com - Lee resigned. No word on how that date went.

Credit: gawker.com

2008: John Edwards and Reille Hunter

Former Senator John Edwards was a charismatic, family values Democrat who almost made it into the White House as John Kerry's vice presidential nominee and was mounting his second campaign for president.

But in 2008, Edwards admitted he had an affair and later admitted fathering a child with former campaign worker Reille Hunter. At the time, his wife, Elizabeth Edwards, was battling terminal cancer.

In the end, Elizabeth separated from her husband and died of cancer. Edwards faces a potential investigation into whether he improperly used campaigns to pay his mistress.

Credit: AP

2008: Eliot Spitzer and Ashley Dupre

Ashley Alexandra Dupre was a 22-year-old aspiring singer/songwriter and part time escort who sunk then New York Governor Eliot Spitzer's political career.

In 2008, the New York Times reported that Spitzer had frequented a high-priced prostitution service, purchasing time with Ashley (at $1,000 per hour) among other ladies.

The governor announced his resignation two days after the report. Investigators alleged that Spitzer spent as much as $80,000 on escorts.

In 2010, CNN hired Spitzer to host his own show. Dupre is still searching for a hit record.

Credit: Personal Photo

2007: Larry Craig and an Airport Bathroom

A quick tap on an airport bathroom floor was all it took to end Idaho Senator Larry Craig's career. He was arrested by an undercover police officer in the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport on suspicion of lewd conduct, more specifically of attempting to solicit sexual activity from an under cover officer.

The Republican pleaded guilty in 2007 to a misdemeanor of disorderly conduct. Craig refused to resign, attempted to withdraw his guilty plea (which the court rejected), and served out the rest of his senate term.

He remains married.

Credit: AP

2006: Ted Haggard and Mike Jones

Ted Haggard (shown here) was a charismatic evangelical pastor. In 2006, it was revealed that Pastor Ted had been using the services of male escort Mike Jones.

Jones alleged that he was paid by Haggard for sex as well as crystal meth. Haggard eventually admitted Jones' claims were true and resigned from his church.

Credit: CBS/AP

2005: Mark Foley and the Pages

In 2005, Florida Congressman Mark Foley was exposed sending "sexually scandalous" emails and texts to young male congressional pages. Several former pages eventually came forward to say they had "sexual liaisons" with Foley as well.

The Republican politician resigned, checked himself into rehab for alcoholism and eventually announced he had been a victim of abuse from a clergyman as a child.

Credit: LAWRENCE JACKSON

1995: Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky

This official White House photo taken Nov. 17, 1995 from page 3,179 of Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr's report on President Clinton, shows Mr. Clinton and Monica Lewinsky at the White House.

The president used contrition, counterattack and an artful definition of what constitutes sex in his ultimately successful defense against impeachment.

He remains married to his wife Hillary Clinton.

Credit: AP Photo/OIC

1988: Gary Hart and Donna Rice

As a popular Democratic senator from Colorado, Gary Hart was a front-runner to be the party's presidential nominee in 1988. His campaign was dogged with rumors about his infidelity almost as soon as it began, prompting Hart to tell the New York Times, "If anybody wants to put a tail on me, go ahead."

Several newspapers did just that, finding, among other things, this photo of Hart with model Donna Rice on a yacht named Monkey Business. Needless to say, Hart did not last much longer in the election. Rice became an anti-pornography activist.

Credit: AP

1980s: Jim Bakker and Jessica Hahn

In the 1980s, Jim Bakker (left) was a televangelist with a huge following and a multi-million dollar media empire in the The PTL Club. That all changed in 1987 when Jessica Hahn, a former church secretary, announced she had a "sexual encounter" with Bakker years earlier and had been paid off for years. Bakker was forced to resign from the PTL in disgrace and was jailed for defrauding his own organization.

His wife, Tammy Faye (right), stood by him for years, but eventually divorced him. Jessica Hahn made a career out of the mess, appearing in Playboy and several Hollywood films.